Page 107 of Alpha Chase

I rake a hand through my hair, quickly scrambling to recover. “Yeah, I mean after I tried to bite you that one time, I went to talk to him and-”

“And he told you he thought we were mates?” she demands, cutting me off again. “You didn’t think that was something you should share?”

I wind my arms around her waist, trying to pull her closer. “Well to be fair, baby, you were pretty pissed off at me at the time.”

Vienna scowls, whacking me on the chest and scrambling out of my arms before I can catch her, hopping out of bed and heading for the bathroom.

“Vee, wait!” I slide out of bed and practically trip over my own feet as I try to stumble after her. “That shit doesn’t matter to me anyways! I don’t give a fuck if we’re fated mates, I just wantyou.”

She freezes in her tracks in front of the bathroom door with her back to me.

“Screw the damn moon,” I growl, closing in on her. “Let’s make our own choice tomorrow. You and me, baby.”

Vienna slowly turns around, eyeing me suspiciously. “So even if we aren’t fated, you would…”

“Yes.” I close the remaining distance between us in one long stride, reaching out to cup her face in both hands and leaning down to press my forehead against hers. “You’remine, Vienna. And I’m yours. You fucking own me. I know we both have a shitload of issues, but maybe that’s why this works. Neither of us have family to rely on anymore, but we have each other. That’s all we need.”

I draw back and tip her face up to mine, staring deeply into her eyes. “I know you want to do everything in life on your own, but you don’t have to anymore. You have me. The whole fated mates thing doesn’t mean jack shit, because you’re the one I want. I choose you.” I blow out a shaky breath, laying my soul bare for her, even at the risk of rejection. “So choose me, too, and let’s fucking do this.”

“You’re insane,” she whispers.

My shoulders slump as my hands drop from her face to hang at my sides, gaze fluttering to the floor and body tensing in anticipation of the cold sting of her rejection. But instead, she reaches up, grabbing my face with both hands and forcing me to look into her eyes. “You’re absolutely fucking insane, Chase Walker, but you’remine. So let’s do it.”

A low growl rumbles in my chest as I slam my lips down over hers, scooping my arms under her thighs and hauling her into my arms. My pulse thumps at a furious rhythm as we lose ourselves in an urgent, desperate kiss, tongues tangling and teeth clanking. I whirl her around in my arms, eating up the distance to the bed in three long strides before throwing her down on it, her body bouncing on the springy mattress as she immediately yanks her shirt off over her head and wriggles out of her little sleep shorts.

I shove my sweatpants and boxers down and step out of them, grabbing her by an ankle and pulling her to the edge of the bed, tossing her leg over my shoulder and entering her in a single powerful thrust. Vienna cries out, grabbing onto my biceps and digging her fingernails into my skin as I start fucking her with wild abandon, leaning down to claim her mouth again in a filthy hot kiss, swallowing her moans of pleasure.

Mine. This girl is all fucking mine, and I’m never letting her go. Come tomorrow night, I’ll take my place as Alpha and declare her as mine before the pack and the moon, because I won’t leave this up to fate. Fate has done nothing but stomp all over both of us, so it’s time that we take it into our own hands.

CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR

Vienna

“Lookin’good,Tink,”Chasecroons, throwing me a wink as he walks into the bedroom.

I spin away from the mirror as he approaches, pushing up on my tiptoes to meet him as he dips his head down to lay a kiss on my lips. Sparks crackle between us and heat pools between my thighs, but the dull hum of the crowd gathering downstairs deters me from taking things further and I reluctantly pull away, breathless as I stare up into the eyes of my dark prince.

“You clean up pretty well yourself, Alpha,” I tease, taking a step back and giving him a once-over, grinning in approval. In honor of his Alpha induction tonight, Rob urged him to ditch his classic hoodie and jeans ensemble for a cleaner look; a black button-up shirt and a pair of slacks. The sleeves of his dress shirt are rolled up to the elbows and his hair is deliciously mussed, so even with the nice clothes he’s still rocking that James Dean devil-may-care look that makes me weak.

I shiver under the intensity of his gaze as his eyes roam over my body, drinking in my appearance like he’s dying of thirst. I opted for a classic little black dress with lace sleeves and an open back, paired with my favorite thigh-high black suede boots. I’m wearing my dark hair down in its natural loose waves and my eyeliner is perfectly winged, my lips painted a fierce shade of red. From the look on Chase’s face, I’d venture to say he approves.

“Guess I should start calling you Luna now, huh?” he asks, wetting his lips with his tongue as his eyes return to mine. “We’ll have to throw you a kickass Luna ceremony. And the party after is gonna beepic. It’ll take some time to plan, but it’s gonna blow Astrid’s Luna celebration out of the water.” He steps closer, his eyes skimming down the length of my body again. “First, though, I’m gonna lock you in my room for an entire week and see how many times I can make you come by spelling M-I-N-E on your pussy with my tongue.”

“Whoa, slow your roll there, babe,” I laugh, throwing up an arm to block his advance. “The party planning can wait; I’m gonna be stretched pretty thin as it is between getting to know your pack, figuring out what my Luna duties are, and training with the squad. As to the other thing, though…” I smirk, trailing my fingers up his chest and relishing in the feel of his taut muscles beneath the thin fabric of his dress shirt.

“The squad?” Chase questions, wrinkling his nose.

“Yeah, Gray said I could start up there next week.” I continue trailing my fingers up his chest, but he catches my wrist, lifting my hand off. I tilt my head quizzically. “What’s wrong?”

His smile fades as he furrows his brow. “Nothing, I just thought since you were gonna be my Luna…”

“That I’d just give up everything else I’ve worked for?” I ask, narrowing my gaze on him defiantly.

He snaps his mouth closed, a storm brewing in his eyes. “Well no, but I thought the whole reason you wanted to join the squad was for room and board and the salary,” he says with a dismissive wave of a hand. “You don’t need any of that anymore.”

“That’s not the only reason,” I reply defensively, snatching my wrist out of his grip and taking a step back. “I just learned my dad was a tracker and that I could be, too. If I learn, it’s almost like…” I sigh, my shoulders slumping. My natural inclination is to fight, but my reasons behind this are too raw for a harsh delivery. I don’t want to bicker with Chase about this; I want him to understand.

“It’s almost like I get a little piece of him back,” I say quietly, looking up at Chase through my eyelashes. “Like I can connect with him through learning how to do what he did, ya know? Kinda like you get to do by stepping into your dad’s role and taking over your pack as Alpha.”

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